SaaS · Software
Fractional CFO for SaaS and software companies.
SaaS companies are valued on recurring revenue, retention and efficiency, not last year's P&L. We build the metrics, model and reporting that investors, lenders and acquirers look for.
SaaS companies are valued on recurring revenue, retention and efficiency, not last year's P&L. We build the metrics, model and reporting that investors, lenders and acquirers look for.
Most software companies have the data to run a sharp finance function. It just lives in four places: the billing system, the CRM, the bank and the books. Each tells a slightly different story, so ARR depends on who pulled it, churn gets argued about, and a board or investor question takes a week to answer.
That costs you twice. Day to day, pricing, hiring and spending decisions get made without a reliable read on unit economics. Then, when you raise money, take on debt or talk to a buyer, every number you can't support gets discounted. A fractional CFO puts one version of the truth in place: metrics defined once, a model you can actually run, and reporting that holds up in diligence.
ARR and MRR, net and gross revenue retention, gross margin, CAC payback and burn, defined once and reported the same way every month.
A driver-based model tied to pipeline, pricing, churn and hiring, so a what-if gets answered in minutes, not days.
Revenue schedules for subscriptions, prepayments and implementation fees, built with your CPA so the books and the metrics agree.
Plan and seat economics, discounting discipline and price increases, tested against retention before you roll them out.
A monthly package with the metrics, the variance and the story, ready before anyone asks for it.
Financials, model and metrics ready for diligence, plus a banker's read on venture debt and lines of credit as alternatives to dilution.
Software companies are usually valued on recurring revenue, with the multiple set by four things. These are where we focus first.
How fast recurring revenue grows, and how much of it is contracted, repeatable revenue rather than one-time services.
Net revenue retention shows whether existing customers expand or shrink. It's often the single number buyers care about most.
How much cash it takes to add a dollar of ARR, and how long it takes a new customer to pay back what it cost to win them.
Hosting, support and onboarding costs set the ceiling on long-term profit. Clean cost allocation is what makes this number believable.
Pulse built the U.S. finance and operations framework for an international RegTech software company entering the American market, and has designed controls and reporting for financial technology companies where the numbers face real scrutiny. Founder Noel Billingsley was also a founding officer of an FDIC-insured community bank, so we know how lenders and investors read a software company's financials, and what makes them hesitate.
“He established our U.S. subsidiary, built our finance and operations framework, and guided our market entry. His ability to bridge systems while aligning execution was instrumental.” — Executive, RegTech software company
“He identified risk, designed structure, and implemented lasting controls — creating confidence across our board and operating teams.” — Leadership, Financial Technology
We work with software companies nationwide, remotely and on-site when it matters.
Fixed scope, quoted up front. Each one stands on its own, and can roll into ongoing CFO support if you want it to.
We define your core SaaS metrics, reconcile them to billing and the books, and build an operating model your team can run.
We pressure-test your metrics, model and financials the way an investor or lender will, and fix what would slow diligence down.
We rebuild revenue schedules for subscriptions, prepayments and implementation fees, working with your CPA on the accounting treatment.
Pricing, a cash question, a board request or anything that doesn’t fit a box. Describe it and we’ll scope it.
We review your billing, CRM and financial data, and what's coming next.
We agree the deliverables, whether that's metrics, a model, a raise or a cleanup.
We build the metrics, model and reporting, and get the numbers diligence-ready.
Monthly CFO support and board reporting as you scale.
A short note is enough. Noel will review it and come back with a clear first step.
Go deeper on the decisions this work supports.
Who does what in finance, the metrics worth tracking, and why profit and cash diverge.
What gets a business loan approved, and the red flags that quietly kill deals.
A scorecard that ties operating gains to revenue, margin and cash.
Start with the ones investors and lenders ask for: ARR and MRR, net and gross revenue retention, gross margin, CAC payback and burn. What matters most is defining each one once, in writing, and reporting it the same way every month so the trend can be trusted.
Usually as a multiple of recurring revenue rather than profit. The multiple moves with growth, retention, gross margin and how efficiently the company turns spending into new revenue. Clean, consistent metrics don't change the business, but they remove the discount buyers and investors apply to numbers they can't verify.
We set up the revenue schedules and reporting for subscriptions, annual prepayments and implementation fees, and work alongside your CPA, who signs off on the accounting treatment under ASC 606.
We're the best fit once you have paying customers and real decisions to make about pricing, hiring, cash or capital. Before that, a solid model and a good bookkeeper usually cover it.
Ongoing CFO support is a monthly retainer sized to your company and the work involved. Defined projects, such as a metrics and model setup or a fundraise readiness review, are quoted as a fixed fee. We scope and quote before any work starts.
No. Your bookkeeper keeps the books and your CPA handles tax and compliance. We handle the financial strategy: metrics, model, pricing, cash and capital. We don't provide tax or legal advice.
Take the 60-second fit check or book a call. Either way you'll leave with a clear next step.
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